The present invention relates to an improved system for transportation and delivery using bar codes to uniquely identify customers and delivered goods in a secure and quick manner.
The Internet has produced a proliferation of e-commerce transactions. While e-commerce transactions offer convenience and speed to customers seeking to purchase goods online, most e-commerce transactions must end with the physical delivery of goods to a consumer. Indeed, the delivery stage is particularly prone to error or sabotage as goods may be inadvertently or maliciously routed to the wrong destination. The ability to secure the delivery of goods to the consumer in a manner that inspires confidence in both parties would be of great benefit to both providers of goods and the consumers who use them.
This need has only grown in importance since the terrorist attacks in the United States on Sep. 11, 2001, and the anthrax attacks on the mails that occurred in the months thereafter. Under the current postal system, most mail cannot be reliably traced back to its point of entry within the postal system. This allows terrorists to use the anonymity of the mails to wreak havoc on the mail system, which is the linchpin of a functioning U.S. economy. According, the ability to reliably trace mail in a manner that is easy to implement and impervious to tampering would greatly increase the security of the mails and the confidence of the public in the system.